Ronaldo return gives United a lift but Ferguson ducks the red issue

Tuesday 13 September 2005 21.13 EDT
First published on Tuesday 13 September 2005 21.13 EDT

Wearing a red T-shirt bearing the words "Liverpool - 5 European Cups," one holidaymaker found the temptation too much as Wayne Rooney, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Rio Ferdinand passed through security at Manchester Airport yesterday en route to Spain. "Eh lads, anyone wanna buy a T-shirt?" he crowed. There were no takers.

Sir Alex Ferguson had already gone through but it is safe to assume that, when the story reached United's manager, he might have struggled to see the funny side.

To Ferguson's irritation, Liverpool's triumph has created an uncomfortable backdrop to United's own pursuit of European glory, an increasingly fraught assignment that has led to more disappointments than he would care to remember.

Events in Istanbul last May have not only increased the pressure on Ferguson but exacerbated the sense of frustration among United's supporters at their comparative lack of success in Europe's premier club competition. It was a point the manager acknowledged ahead of tonight's opening tie in Group D against Villarreal.

"It's odd," Ferguson said of United's recent failures, most notably their second-round exit in the last two seasons. "I thought that winning it in 1999 would open the floodgates for us but we've not been back to the final since. That adds some urgency to it; we have to get back there."

One of Ferguson's idiosyncrasies is that, when he complains that United have won it only twice in their history, he uses the examples of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Ajax and Milan as multiple winners rather than the club 35 miles along the M62 - or even Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest, two-times champions.

His dislike of Liverpool and a long-held aversion to Clough, whom he has described as "British football's rudest manager," ensures that will continue to be the case and he shied away noticeably yesterday when invited to compliment Liverpool on their achievement.

"I didn't feel anything," said Ferguson, thinking back to last season's European final and Liverpool's victory over Milan. "It was the same when anyone wins the European Cup in that I was wishing we were there instead but it didn't really register with me. You get surprise winners and Liverpool were a surprise."

Ferguson's primary concern in the El Madrigal stadium will be the absence of his captain Roy Keane, who has damaged a hamstring and did not fly with the rest of the team yesterday amid concerns of a lengthy lay-off. Better news for United was that Cristiano Ronaldo has rejoined the squad after missing Saturday's Manchester derby because of the death of his father.

"We left the decision to him and he came back to training on Monday, which we are very happy about," said Ferguson. "He is a young lad, so you don't know how he will react, but I think the sense of occasion will help him."

Tonight's tie will reunite United with their former striker Diego Forlan although, with 25 goals in La Liga last season, the Uruguayan's form indicates that this will be a remarkably different player from the £7.5m signing who did not score in his first nine months at Old Trafford and who managed only 17 goals during two and a half years in English football.

"I liked him a lot as a player but his problem was that we already had Van Nistelrooy and I like to play only one up front," said Ferguson. "This became a frustration for him and I'm just sad that we could not give him the regular football that he wanted. His form has been fantastic in Spain and I'm sure he will be a big threat."

Ferguson, nevertheless, should not see too many complications in a group which also includes Benfica and Lille. The dangers, as United have found out, generally lie further ahead. Six years have passed since Ferguson's solitary triumph in this competition and his frustration will hardly be helped by the fact that the trophy now resides, permanently, at Anfield.

Ferguson, it is fair to say, will not be popping in to check it is being regularly polished when he takes his team to Liverpool on Sunday.